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By JON WILSON, Times Staff WriterA man remains more vigilant after armed muggers in ski masks jumped him off Fourth Street N in St. Petersburg.
ST. PETERSBURG - Taking a midnight walk in a quiet neighborhood, Michael Schiffman noticed two men dressed all in black perhaps 20 feet behind him.
"I kind of thought it was a joke at first. You don't see people in ski masks very often," Schiffman said.
The scene quickly turned ugly.
The two men caught Schiffman and tackled him in an alley near Fourth Street N and 43rd Avenue. They pistol-whipped him, apparently intending a robbery. Both had guns.
When the assailants saw that Schiffman had no money, they continued to beat and kick him until a resident yelled that police were on the way.
Two weeks later, the Nov. 30 episode continues to haunt the 40-year-old quality assurance specialist at Ceridian.
"It's awful," he said. "Just walking from my back door to my car, I'm always looking over my shoulder. It was a pretty terrifying feeling."
Doctors used seven staples to repair a cut on his hand. He said he he had lumps on his head and cuts and bruises all over his body but missed just one day of work.
A police dog tried to sniff out the trail of the attackers, who got away. The investigation is continuing.
On Dec. 12, an employee of Durango's Steakhouse was slain at the restaurant, which is about five blocks from where Schiffman was attacked.
Police have no evidence the incidents are related, said spokesman George Kajtsa. "It could be just coincidence," he said.
Schiffman described both of his attackers as being about 5 feet 8. The only thing he heard either say was, "Get him."
He said they were perhaps 20 feet from him when he saw them, and that they ran to catch him.
"They were all in black. Jeans, T-shirt, ski masks. It was like something out of a horror movie. They looked really creepy," Schiffman said.
But most striking, he said, was how well-prepared the attackers seemed to be.
"I really do want to get the word out there," he said. "These guys knew what they were doing. They could fight, they could run, they had it all set up. They knew what they were doing, and they enjoyed what they were doing."
He said he was visiting a friend and decided to take a late walk "on a quiet street and a good neighborhood." It is near a restaurant and commercial section of Fourth Street N, a major city thoroughfare. It is flanked by pleasant residential areas.
Originally from Chicago, Schiffman came here from Los Angeles. The possibility of a mugging was not on his mind when he went out for the walk.
"I didn't think it really would happen here," he said.
But now he won't let his guard down.
"All I can say is, be aware of your surroundings," he said.
"It was a beautiful night, walking down the street, deep in my thoughts. Maybe if I would have paid attention ..."